Adventures in Dramaturgy: 2012 World Shakespeare Festival Blog Entry

In April 2012, the Royal Shakespeare Company sent out an open invitation for blog submissions to its myShakespeare project, which was part of the 2012 World Shakespeare Festival. The RSC asked people around the world to share their thoughts and experiences on Shakespeare. Especially since it was the 20th Anniversary of the Heart of America Shakespeare Festival and I had already written an article on it, I was eager to share my work with a worldwide audience. I contacted Sarah Ellis at the RSC, and she was happy to accept my contribution.

Click here to link to my blog entry titled "Shakespeare in America's Heartland" on the myShakespeare website.

About Thomas Canfield

Dr. Thomas Canfield has a Ph.D. in English, with a specialization in Elizabethan drama, from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. Currently, he is pursuing a second master’s degree in Theatre at UMKC, where he has been the dramaturg for productions of The Country Wife, Great Expectations, and A Midsummer Night’s Dream.

At the Kansas City Repertory Theatre, he has contributed to productions of King Lear, Gee’s Bend, The Drawer Boy, and Death of a Salesman.

In eight seasons as Dramaturg in Residence for the Heart of America Shakespeare Festival, he has contributed to summer productions of Romeo and Juliet, Othello, The Merry Wives of Windsor, King Richard III, Macbeth, Antony and Cleopatra, A Midsummer Night's Dream, and As You Like It. He also is working on the 2014 production of The Winter's Tale.

Most recently, he presented a lecture on on representations of As You Like It in graphic and performance art at the Kansas City Public Library, and presented a Show Talk at the Heart of America Shakespeare Festival. Currently, Dr. Canfield is writing a history of the first Equity playhouse in Kansas City, the Circle theatre, which was located in Union Station from 1962-67.

Dr. Canfield teaches Shakespeare and Foundations of Theatre at UMKC, first-year writing seminars at Park University, and is a professor of English and Humanities at National American University. In his spare time, he is a writer and reviewer for KC Stage magazine. He also has been a new script reader for for the Unicorn Theatre and an adjudicator for the Blue Star program through Kansas City's Starlight Theatre.

Adventures in Dramaturgy

2012 World Shakespeare Festival Blog Entry

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About Thomas Canfield

The Circle Theatre (1962-67)